Flash of Violence
by kjt1
Summary: Castle thinks it's the "coolest case ever."  Beckett thinks it's a gruesome murder scene.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own 'em

Spoilers: None that I'm aware of.

Author's Notes: Unfortunately Season 3 has not yet started here in Australia so I haven't seen it. On the bright side, I've been filling in my time by writing this fic instead. Thanks to Tanya Reed for the great beta work.

Rating: T (purely due to the subject matter)

* * *

"It's the freakiest thing I've seen in a while," Detective Javier Esposito commented as he surveyed the crime scene in front of him.

"Yet, also the coolest," Rick Castle stated with a grin, looking around the garishly decorated hotel room. 'Cheap and nasty' sprang to his mind as a description, but he supposed it looked clean enough... just.

"I don't think their parents would be pleased to hear either of those assessments," Detective Kate Beckett pointed out. Her glare was met by chastened looks from both men. Turning to one of the other people in the room, she asked, "Lanie, what can you tell us?"

"Not much," the ME replied. "R2-D2 over there was bashed over the head. _That_," she paused, wondering what term to use.

"Cyberman," Castle supplied helpfully.

"_Right_. The _Cyberman_ was shot, guess the armor wasn't bullet proof. C3-PO was also shot." She turned to the next fatality. "The -"

"Dalek," Castle cut in.

"I knew that one!" Lanie Parish glared. "The Dalek I'll need to get back to the morgue to assess, and determine whether the bullet or the stab wound to the jugular was the cause of death. Guess he shouldn't have gone for the flexible neck costume option."

"And that one?" Beckett asked, looking at the last remaining body.

"Princess Leia over there was stabbed, as you can see."

"The lightsaber? Really?" Castle queried incredulously. "Coolest case ever!"

"Castle!" Beckett glared. "And put the phone away! How many times I have told you, no taking photos at crime scenes!"

Castle nodded his head, but turned away to take a few more sneaky photos while Beckett spoke to Ryan.

"Any IDs?"

"The girl is Annie Dunkley, according to her driver's license," Ryan told her.

"No wonder she prefers to be Leia," Castle commented, earning himself yet another glare from Beckett.

"Anything on the others?"

"Not so far. The room's in her name. She checked in alone."

"The hotel staff couldn't tell you anything?"

"Haven't shown them the photos yet," Ryan said, "but the manager is waiting for me downstairs."

"So, was this some kind of costume party, or what?" Beckett wondered.

"According to the front desk, there's some kind of sci-fi convention going on."

"No there's not," Castle argued immediately, drawing surprised glances from everyone else in the room. "There's not," he insisted, "I'd know about it."

Beckett grinned. "Should have known you were that much of a sci-fi geek, Castle."

"Proud of it," he stated. "There's not a convention, though, not right now. Or at least, not a decent one."

"They're just kids," Esposito pointed out. "Maybe it's a college thing? Her license says she's from Pennsylvania, but she could be a student here in New York, though there's no student ID with her stuff."

"In a hotel room? If it's just some college thing, you'd think it would be held there, no need for them to stay in a hotel." She turned to Ryan. "You and Esposito work the hotel, talk to the staff and the neighboring rooms, see what you can find out. Any cameras?"

"Lobby only," Ryan replied. "Not exactly a high class hotel. I doubt they want to catch much of what goes on here on camera."

"Unless it's for blackmail purposes," Castle commented. The others nodded in agreement.

Esposito and Ryan left the room to carry out their investigation and Beckett turned back to Lanie. "Time of death?"

"Tough to say for sure until I do the autopsies, but I'd say sometime between one and three am. Esposito said that housekeeping found the bodies about an hour ago." Beckett nodded, having already been informed of that en route to the scene.

Beckett started wandering the room, taking in the scene and trying to formulate some idea of what might have happened. Castle, on the other hand, had stopped sneaking photos and was now jotting things down in his notepad.

"You got a theory?" Beckett asked, indicating the pad.

"No," he shook his head. "Just got to capture every detail of this for the next poker game discussion."

Beckett rolled her eyes and let out an exasperated sigh. "The Cyberman, what's that from?" Castle looked at her blankly and she rephrased her question. "I know R2-D2, C3-PO and Leia are from Star Wars and I know the Dalek is from some British show, but I don't know what the Cyberman is from."

"You really need to keep up with pop culture, Beckett," Castle told her, shaking his head in pity. "That _British show_ is Doctor Who, one of the best science-fiction shows ever made. The Daleks are one of the enemies against the Doctor, the Cybermen are another."

"So, the Cybermen and the Daleks work together against the Doctor?" she asked, looking for any piece of information that might be useful to the case.

"No, no, no," Castle replied, making a mental note to introduce Beckett to the wonders of 'Doctor Who'. "The Daleks and the Cybermen are rivals. Both are enemies of the Doctor, but they're also enemies of each other."

"So, the fact they're in the same room here..."

"Just fans being fans. Though if Lanie tells us that the Dalek killed the Cyberman, or vice-versa, then this case will get even cooler!"

"And your little fanboy heart will beat right out of your chest," she chuckled, then laughed more heartily when he didn't make any denial.

* * *

TBC...


	2. Chapter 2

Beckett anotated the murder board with as much information as she could. The limited camera coverage in the hotel was a problem, especially as there was a back entrance that guests could use that didn't have a camera. They were still trawling through the lobby footage, but were yet to find any of Annie Dunkley.

"Forget going backwards from today, we're getting nowhere. Just go straight back to the footage from the day she checked in, find her on it. Then, see if there's anyone hanging around and work forward," Beckett instructed Ryan. He nodded and headed for his desk to continue the search.

"The local PD talked to the parents. They're making arrangements to get here, but it probably won't be until tomorrow," Esposito informed her. "She is a college student, but at Penn-State. The parents had no idea she was in New York."

"Did they know anything about the sci-fi stuff?"

"They were too distraught for the local PD to get much out of them. She has a brother, though, and he _is_ in New York, or is supposed to be. He works at some comic book store."

Castle's eyebrows rose. "A _comic book store_? Hmm, interesting." He didn't elaborate and Beckett turned her attention back to Esposito.

"The parents are in no state to tell the brother, so I said we'd do it."

"Anything on the IDs of the others yet?"

He shook his head. "Not so far, but the prints are running now. They put a rush on it since it's a multiple homicide."

"Okay, Castle and I will track down the brother and see if he knew she was in New York and more importantly, find out if he knows the other vics. You do a full background check on Dunkley, college transcripts, everything. Find out who she hung out with at college."

"On it," said Esposito as he walked away.

* * *

"Castle, put it down," Beckett said with irritation as he picked up yet another comic book. They were waiting for Jeff Dunkley to finish up with a customer, but the customer seemed to be taking forever and Castle was making the most of the opportunity to roam the store and peruse all its merchandise.

"I thought you liked comics?" Castle queried, remembering she'd known who Frank Miller was.

"I do, when I'm not working," she said pointedly. He merely shrugged and continued to flip through the pages.

"I think I'll get this one for Alexis." He closed the comic and walked towards the counter.

"Of course it's for Alexis," Beckett muttered as she followed him.

"I'll be right with you," Jeff Dunkley told them as he finished up with the customer. He rang up the sale and wished the man a good day as he handed over the bag containing a rare comic book. "Sorry about that," he said as he gave them his full attention. "When someone's interested in buying a comic as expensive as that, you don't let them go."

"Understandable," Castle nodded.

"Want me to ring that up for you?" Jeff asked, motioning to the comic book that Castle was still holding.

"Sure."

"And then we'd like to talk to you, Mr Dunkley," Beckett said, producing her badge and introducing herself, leaving out that she worked in homicide. He rang up Castle's comic book while he waited for her to explain, but Beckett just gave him a soft look and, once the sale was complete, asked, "Is there somewhere more private we can talk, Mr Dunkley?"

"I'm the only one working, can it wait?"

"I'm afraid not. Can you lock up?"

He nodded and moved to the door, locking it securely and then leading them to a back room that was barely big enough to hold the table and four chairs it contained.

They each took a seat, Beckett ensuring she was facing Jeff and she started the conversation gently.

"When did you last hear from your sister, Mr Dunkley?"

"Annie? A couple of days ago."

"Was that in person?"

"No, on the phone. What's this about?"

Beckett dodged the question by asking another of her own. "When did you last see her in person?"

He thought for a moment and then replied, "A couple of weekends ago, we both went home for my mom's birthday."

"Did you know your sister was in New York?"

"She's here?" His suprise appeared genuine. "She's supposed to be at school. Is she in some kind of trouble?"

Beckett leaned forward in her seat and told him as gently as she could, "I'm afraid she was found dead this morning, in a hotel a few blocks from here."

Jeff Dunkley's face paled and he visibly shook. "No, that can't be, not Annie. Like I told you, she's at school. You must be mistaken."

"I'm afraid we're not. She had her driver's license on her, and the campus police have confirmed she hasn't been seen at college the last few days. Her roommate hasn't seen her. We do need someone to formally ID the body, but we're sure it's her. I'm very sorry."

"But it doesn't make sense," he argued, his voice distraught. "You said she was found in a hotel. Why would she be there? Why wouldn't she stay with me?"

"She checked in three days ago. When exactly did you last speak to her?"

"The night before last."

"And she seemed okay? Was there any particular reason she called?"

"She seemed fine. She was just calling to say hi. We keep in regular contact, but she usually calls me when she gets time between classes and study." Jeff raised pleading eyes to Beckett. "Please, tell me this isn't true."

"I'm sorry, Mr Dunkley," Beckett said softly.

"Do... do my parents know?"

"Yes, the local police informed them. They'll be here tomorrow."

He nodded and dipped his head again. "How did it happen?"

Beckett had to strain to make out his words. He spoke very quietly and the sound was muffled due to his voice being directed at his chest.

"She was stabbed."

Instead of his head shooting up in shock as she'd expected, he drew his hands to the back of his neck and started rocking back and forwards. Finally composing himself, he raised tearstained eyes to meet hers.

"Someone broke in?"

"We're not sure of the circumstances yet, but she wasn't alone."

"You caught who did it?" he asked hopefully.

"No. She wasn't the only victim. There were others in the room."

He caught the plural. "Others? How many?"

"There were five victims in total."

"Oh my God."

"I'm very sorry to ask you this, Mr Dunkley, but do you know who your sister's friends were, anyone she might spend time with, come to New York with, let into her hotel room?"

Jeff looked at her in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"We don't know who the other victims are," Castle explained. "They're four men, well, around the same age as your sister, but they had no IDs on them."

"I... I don't understand. Annie is... was," he stammered, "very quiet. She hardly spoke to anyone and was very shy around guys. Even my buddies, who she grew up around, could hardly get any words out of her if they saw her. I don't think she really had any friends, none that she mentioned anyway, she just studied."

"Was your sister into science fiction?" Castle asked, sensing they wouldn't get much more out of him about her friends.

"No, that's my thing. Annie used to say I'm a total sci-fi nerd; I'd call her a study nerd," he said wistfully.

"But she'd know, for instance, who Princess Leia was?"

"Doesn't everyone?" he shrugged. "Why?"

Beckett sent Castle a look before he could continue, silently telling him not to reveal the victims state of dress when they were found. She resumed the questioning, changing the subject.

"When did you move to New York?"

"About a year ago. I finished college and decided to move here with some of my friends."

"What did you study in college?" It probably wasn't a relevant question, but Beckett wanted to relax him before moving the topic back to his sister.

"Business."

"You moved here to try and get a job?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "I took this job while I searched for an entry level position, but... well, I'm still here. Economic crisis, you know?"

Beckett smiled at him. "Getting to read comics all day can't be all that bad."

"It's pretty cool," he shrugged.

"I think Castle here would say it was _very_ cool," Beckett grinned, looking at Castle and receiving a fast head bob in confirmation of her statement. She then brought the conversation back around to Annie.

"Did your sister ever visit you here, in New York?"

"Once," he replied. "About six months ago, for a weekend. She wanted to go to some seminar and needed a place to stay."

"Your roommates didn't mind her staying?"

"Nah, they were cool about it. I gave her my room and I crashed on the couch, so it wasn't like it really affected them."

Beckett nodded and opened the file she'd brought with her. "I'm sorry to ask you to do this, Mr Dunkley, but could you take a look at these photos and let me know if you recognise anyone?" She handed over the photos of the other victims and watched his reaction closely.

He blanched as he saw the lifeless faces, but shook his head. "No, I don't know any of them." The photos had been headshots only, with all headgear removed, so that the costumes weren't visible and Beckett decided to still keep that aspect of the scene quiet since a press blackout was in place.

Retrieving the photos, she considered her next move, but her cellphone rang before she could form a question. Noting the caller ID and excusing herself, she stepped outside the room to take the call from Esposito.

Jeff Dunkley couldn't stop his eyes from welling again and Castle was at a loss for words, unsure of how to comfort the young man. Thankfully, they were only alone for a couple of minutes before Beckett returned and recaimed her seat.

"Mr Dunkley, thank you for your time and I'm very sorry about your sister. Is there anything we can do for you?" she asked gently.

He shook his head in reply and then with a shaky voice asked, "You said someone needs to ID her body, do I need to do that?"

"No, your father has confirmed he'll do it when he gets here tomorrow," she replied, relaying some of the latest information from Esposito. Standing up, she offered her hand to Dunkley, who shook it weakly. Castle offered his hand as well when he stood. "Here's my card, if you need anything, please contact me," Beckett said.

"Thank you," Dunkley replied.

"Is there anyone I can call to come down here and take over from you?" she asked as she realized there would be no one to run the store.

"There's someone else due here in a little while anyway, but thank you," he replied. Beckett nodded as she and Castle took their leave.

"Think he'll be okay?" Castle asked as they exited to the street.

"I hope so. Unfortunately there's not much we can do."

"Shouldn't we have waited until he was off work before talking to him?"

"I'd have liked to, but with a multiple murder, time is of the essence."

"Do you think he knows more than he's letting on?"

They had reached the car and Beckett got in it before answering. "I don't think he knew anyone in the photos, but I'm not sure that Annie Dunkley was as squeaky clean as he's making out, not when we found her in a hotel room dressed as Princess Leia and with a group of guys."

"And dressed as Slave Leia as well," Castle commented, drawing a curious look from his partner. "That wasn't just any Princess Leia costume," he explained, "it was Slave Leia. All the rage at conventions and not really for the _shy, quiet_ type."

"Well, we'll have to consider that later. Right now, we have another body."

"We do?" Castle queried, surprised they would get another case when they were already dealing with five murders.

"Yeah, not far from here, a hotel a few blocks in the other direction, guy dressed up as Doctor Who, apparently."

Castle sat forward in his seat eagerly and turned his head to look at her. "_Really_? Which generation?"

"What?"

"You don't know _anything_ about Doctor Who, do you?" he said, giving her a pitying look. He added to his earlier mental note, deciding he would buy her at least one dvd boxset.

"I have better things to do with my time than watch sci-fi shows, Castle," she told him, "like catching murderers."

"You make them sound pointless," he complained. "You should really watch some of them sometime. I can introduce you to some great shows. There's one about a space cowboy -"

Beckett cut him off. "Castle, are you forgetting we have yet another body? Not really the time to be discussing tv shows."

"I beg to differ," he argued, remembering his original point. "The generation of Doctor that the guy is dressed up as may tell us a lot about him."

"I'd settle for just knowing his name. Esposito said he's another with no ID."

"All the more important to know the generation then."

"Okay, Castle, I'll bite," she said with a hint of annoyance. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"The Doctor regenerates every so often, it's the way they explain a new actor taking over the part. Every Doctor is unique though, usually through specific costume items and mannerisms. It'll be interesting to see which Doctor he chose to emulate."

"Right, that'll be the interesting part," Kate said dryly.

"Usually people choose to emulate the generation of Doctor that they grew up with, so it'll give an indication of his age, at least."

She turned a semi-amused gaze to him. "You don't think those of us who are trained detectives, not to mention our medical examiner, will be able to tell his age by, oh I don't know, _looking at him_?"

"Okay, so it won't really help with _that_ part," he acknowledged begrudgingly, "but it'll still be interesting."

"To anyone other than you?"

Knowing she had him, Castle pulled out his iPhone and started to play with it.

* * *

TBC...

Thank you for the reviews and story alerts. As always, they're greatly appreciated.


	3. Chapter 3

"Well?" Beckett looked at Castle expectantly.

"The David Tennant era," he commented, knowing exactly what she was asking. At her blank expression he continued, "The Doctor before the current one, he took over the role in 2005, ended in an episode shown in the UK on New Year's Day this year."

Esposito, Ryan and Beckett all looked at him, then at each other and burst out laughing.

"You really are a fanboy, huh, Castle?" Beckett grinned. "So, does it tell you anything about his age?"

"His age?" Esposito interrupted in confusion. "He's about twenty, same as the others."

"I agree, but Castle has an 'age by era' method," she grinned.

"Okay, I'll admit it hasn't added anything to the murder scenario, but at least you're better educated now," Castle stated, directing the comment to Beckett.

"I don't need your kind of education, Castle," she said with amusement and then turned serious again as she examined the scene. "So, what do we know?" she asked Ryan and Esposito.

"Lanie said time of death is similar to the others, probably within an hour of them, either way. The body was found by housekeeping," Ryan replied. "But the front desk staff say he's not the registered occupant of the room."

"Definitely not?" she queried, her interest piqued.

"No, it's a woman's name on the booking and the registration card, sole occupant." He checked his notes. "Carrie Adams."

"And where is she?"

"Don't know. We're checking on her home address details now, trying to get a cellphone number as there was none given on the card," he replied, nodding to Esposito who was on the phone. "She's from Pennsylvania though, near the Penn-State campus."

"Let's hope she hasn't ended up as another body in another hotel room," Beckett commented. "Any camera footage here?"

"Same as the other place, lobby only. We've got the tapes and a uniform is with the front desk staff now, trying to identify Carrie Adams on them."

"Did she check in around the same day as Annie Dunkley?"

"Yes," Ryan confirmed. "My guess is that she knew Annie."

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," Beckett warned. "This guy could be nothing to do with Adams, so she might have nothing to do with whatever _convention_ was being held."

Esposito walked over at that moment to update them. "Yo. I tried the home number Adams listed on her registration card and got her roommate. I have a cell number for her now, but it's switched off. I left a message. The roommate says Adams goes to Penn-State and was coming to New York to participate in a flash mob, she was planning to get an Uhura outfit. " He grinned a little as he imparted the last piece of information.

"A sci-fi flash mob? Cool!" Castle rejoiced, then quieted as he caught Beckett's look.

"A flash mob? That's where a group of people meet up and do something weird, isn't it?" she queried.

Ryan and Esposito both nodded, but Castle shook his head and explained, "Doesn't have to be something _weird_, it's more something _pointless_. They get together for a short period, do whatever they plan to do and then disappear."

"So, they planned to dress up as sci-fi characters and gather somewhere, just for the sake of it?"

"Some people get their kicks that way," Castle said with a grin. "As long as they're not trying to cause trouble, it's not illegal."

"It is when it results in murder," Beckett pointed out. "Okay, we need to know where they were planning to hold the flash mob, assuming it hasn't already been held, how it was organized, who organized it, who was attending and where Carrie Adams is." She turned to Esposito. "You and Ryan try and track down Adams. See how the front desk is doing with identifying her on the camera footage and get some background info, anything that might help to find her. If she isn't our murderer, she could be a potential victim." Both male detectives nodded and left the room.

"So, what now?" Castle asked.

"There's nothing much more we can do with this guy until we know who he is. Lanie's already told us that he died from a gunshot wound around the same time as the others. We'll work on the flash mob angle for now."

* * *

"Okay, Castle, tell me everything you know about flash mobs," Beckett requested as they sat at her desk and drank coffee.

"I don't know much," he shrugged, "I've just done a small amount of research on them."

"For a book?"

He shook his head and grinned. "No, just for curiosity. I was wondering if I could incite one of my fan sites to hold one." His face took on a wistful look as he elaborated, "Thousands of Richard Castle fans converging on Times Square, each bringing their favorite book. Imagine the publicity I'd get."

Beckett rolled her eyes. "And of course, you would just _happen_ to be walking past as it was taking place?"

"I hadn't thought of that, but now that you mention it..."

"So how are they organized?" she asked, re-focusing them before he got too off track.

"Usually via the internet. Social networking sites, that kind of thing."

"So, if we search on the net, we may find something about this one?"

Castle nodded his head slightly, but didn't look convinced. "It's possible, but we already know that both Dunkley and Adams are Penn-State students, it may be that Esposito was right and this is a college stunt."

"But if that's the case, why come to New York?"

"Bigger stage?" Castle suggested, pleased when Beckett stood up and added his potential theory to the murder board. While she did that, he pulled out his iPhone and started searching for flash mob details, looking for any clues. "There are a few flash mobs mentioned on Twitter," he told her, "but I'm not seeing anything specifically about a sci-fi one."

"If it had already taken place, would there be news about it?"

"Unless it was incredibly small, I'd expect to see something about it somewhere," he nodded, "especially on Twitter."

"And if it hasn't taken place yet and there's nothing on there about it specifically..." She trailed off but Castle understood it was a question.

"It might mean it's a very small gathering, organized amongst friends, or it might just be that it is one of the flash mobs I've found mentioned and the sci-fi aspect of it is being passed on privately."

"How many have you found?" she asked, retaking her seat after updating the murder board with all the new information.

"There are a few that have taken place over the last couple of days, but they were based around other things, not sci-fi, so I think we can rule them out?" He looked to Beckett for agreement and she nodded. "There are two others mentioned for today and one for tomorrow. These things can be arranged at very short notice though."

"Are any of the three planned _events_ taking place near where the victims were staying?"

Castle scrolled through the tweets, pulling up details of some every so often and then eventually replied, "The one taking place tomorrow is about two blocks from where Dunkley was found."

"Near the comic book store?" Beckett asked immediately.

"No, other direction."

"Can you find out who's organising it?"

"I can try," he replied and turned his attention back to his phone.

* * *

An hour later Castle was debating whether to create a fake Twitter account to glean more information, just as Esposito and Ryan walked into the precinct.

"Any luck locating Carrie Adams?" Beckett asked them both.

"She returned my call about ten minutes ago," Esposito informed her. "She's on her way here now, though she doesn't know why."

"She hasn't been back to her hotel?"

"No, she said she stayed at a friend's hotel last night. Her phone battery died and she only realized when she woke up about an hour ago."

Castle checked his watch and grinned. "Sounds like it was a good night, if she was only waking up an hour ago."

"Given what we're about to tell her, I hope she made the most of it," Beckett commented. "Any luck with the flash mob organizer?"

"I've traced the tweets back as far as I can, but I can't find the initial one that instigated it."

"Well, hopefully we'll find out soon enough, from Carrie Adams."

Esposito and Ryan shared a look, wondering if they would receive an update on what Castle and Beckett had been investigating. Since Beckett had picked up the phone to check if there were any IDs on the other victims yet, they decided to follow Castle to the break room.

"So, what have you guys found?" Ryan asked as he fixed coffees for himself and his partner.

Castle's face lit up as he explained the task he'd been assigned, drawing out the story and adding dramatic pauses wherever he could.

After a while, Esposito bluntly asked, "So, you've been playing on Twitter?"

"Pretty much, yes," Castle admitted with a shrug and a grin.

"While we've been out tracking down the girl who can tell us face to face in minutes what you've been _attempting_ to get from the internet for the last hour?"

"_Tracking down_? Don't you mean placing a call and having it returned?" Castle argued childishly.

Ryan chuckled and decided to leave the two of them to debate while he retreated to his desk, coffee in hand, for a few minutes of relaxation before Carrie Adams arrived.

* * *

Thanks for the alerts, etc. Did anyone guess the flash mob aspect?


	4. Chapter 4

"She looks nervous," Castle said as he surveyed their visitor from outside the meeting room.

"Most people are when they're in a police precinct," Beckett pointed out. "Usually those who appear the most nervous are those who've done nothing wrong. Those who have something to hide, try to cover up too much."

"And eventually make themselves appear guilty instead of nervous," Castle finished, nodding his head.

Beckett turned to him and asked, "You ready?" He nodded and the two entered the room.

"Miss Adams," Beckett began, "thank you for coming in."

"It's okay," Carrie Adams replied. "But can you tell me what this is all about?"

"You told Detective Esposito that you didn't stay in your hotel last night, is that right?"

"Yes," she nodded. "I stayed with a friend. We were out late and I didn't want to take the subway back on my own."

"Was anyone else staying in your hotel room with you?"

"_My_ room? No."

Beckett leaned forward, giving her a sympathetic look. "Miss Adams, a man was found murdered in your hotel room this morning."

"Wh... what?" Carrie stammered, automatically looking to Castle, hoping he would refute the statement. When he too sent her a sympathetic look, she asked, "Who?"

"We don't know," Beckett replied. "You're sure no-one was staying with you, someone you might not have told the hotel about?"

"No, I swear. I was the only one in the room."

"And you don't know anyone who would be in your room?"

"Other than hotel staff? No."

Much as she had done with Jeff Dunkley, Beckett opened a file and pulled out a photo. "I'm sorry to ask you to do this, but could you please take a look at this photo and see if you recognize him?"

Nodding nervously, Carrie leaned forward and looked at the photo. "Oh my God, Eddie!" she said on a breath.

"Eddie?"

"Eddie Davis. We're in college together."

Beckett made a note and then continued the questioning. "Did you travel to New York together?" she asked gently.

"Yes. But this doesn't make sense. Why would he be in _my_ room? He has his own room in the hotel."

"The same hotel as you?" Carrie nodded and Beckett retrieved the printed guest list the hotel had supplied from her file and quickly scanned it, looking for Davis's name. She found him and noted he was on a different floor to Adams. Deciding that time was of the essence, she took a few moments to step outside the room and pass on Davis's name to Esposito.

"Okay, let's take this from the beginning. What were you and Eddie doing in New York? Shouldn't you be at college?" she asked as she reclaimed her seat.

"We came for... uh... a thing."

"What _thing_?" Beckett queried, already knowing the answer.

When Carrie didn't reply, Castle leaned forward and pressed, "A flash mob?"

Her eyes flew to his. "How did you know?"

"We talked to your roommate," Beckett told her. "Is the friend you stayed with last night here for the flash mob too?"

"Yes."

"I need their name and where they're staying."

"Michael Palmer. I can't remember the name of his hotel, but it's not that far from mine." Beckett knew that every room in Dunkley's hotel had been canvassed, so didn't get her hopes up that it was the same one. Instead, she asked for the street name and when Carrie couldn't supply that, she gave them directions from her own hotel, allowing Beckett to identify it. Carrie also provided Palmer's cellphone number.

"So, is Michael your boyfriend?" Beckett asked the young woman.

"Um..."

"We're not here to judge you, Carrie," she said gently, "we just need as much information as possible, to help us find who killed Eddie." _And the other five victims_, she added silently.

"We sort of... hook up every so often," Carrie said with a great deal of embarrassment.

"If you're both here for the flash mob, why didn't you stay at the same hotel?"

"Michael's family has money. He can afford to stay somewhere better than my hotel."

"And he didn't offer to let you share his room?" Castle guessed.

Her embarrassment was evident again as she replied, "No-one really knows about us. We keep it quiet. We figured no-one would notice if I snuck over there last night."

Deciding it would be better to talk to Palmer directly, Beckett brought the conversation back to the victim.

"What can you tell us about Eddie? Did you two travel to New York together?"

"Yeah, a few of days ago. We decided to come for the weekend and then leave tomorrow, after the flash mob."

"Where and when is the flash mob taking place?" Castle asked and when she was hesitant to reply he added, "As long as it's nothing illegal, we won't put a stop to it."

Beckett rolled her eyes and amended, "Assuming there is no link with the murder, that is."

Carrie gave them the details and Castle mentally high-fived himself since it was the one he had told Beckett about earlier. Sensing his victory glee, Beckett raised her eyebrows at him until he settled down again.

"And you were going dressed as sci-fi characters?" Carrie nodded in confirmation and Beckett continued, "Was there any reason that Eddie would be wearing his costume last night, when the flash mob isn't until tomorrow?"

"He thought it would be funny to walk around New York in it and see if anyone recognized it as a costume, since Doctor Who isn't that well known in the US and the costume is really just a coat and sneakers."

Beckett thought to herself that while that worked as a reason for Eddie Davis to be dressed up, it didn't make sense for the other victims. Their costumes were much more recognizable.

"How long have you known Eddie?"

"Almost two years. We started college together and were in a couple of the same classes."

"Was it just you, Eddie and Michael who came for the flash mob, or did others come with you?"

Carrie hesitated, but as Beckett stared at her she relented and answered the question. "Eddie and I travelled here together. Michael came on his own as his classes finished later than ours... there were others coming though, from school."

"I need their names."

"I don't know them. I just heard that some others were coming."

"Do you know how many?" Beckett pressed.

Shaking her head and wringing her hands together, Carrie replied, "No. I think it was about ten or twelve, but I don't know for sure. We were only meeting up tomorrow, for the flash mob."

"Who organized the flash mob?" It was Castle asking the question and Carrie seemed to calm down a little as she met his gaze.

"I don't know who organized it here in New York, but it was Paul who told us about it at school and started trying to get a group together to come here."

"Paul?" Beckett instinctively leaned forward, awaiting what she felt could be a crucial piece of information.

"Paul Braden. He's in my Economics class." She paused for a moment and then her face paled as she exclaimed, "Oh my God, Paul! Is he okay?"

Beckett shared a confused look with Castle before asking, "What do you mean?"

"He's Eddie's roommate. Is he okay? Was he hurt?"

"Eddie's roommate in college?"

"Yes," Carrie nodded, "but here too. Paul was coming to New York later than us, with some of the others, but he was staying with Eddie, so they could split the room cost."

"Eddie was found in your room, alone. There's no reason to suspect that Paul was anywhere near him when he was killed." Although she said that, Beckett was already running through scenarios in her head and Paul Braden was featuring in a lot of them.

"I need to call him," Carrie said with urgency. She pulled out her phone. "Is it okay?"

"Why don't you let us do that?" Beckett suggested, though it was more of an order. Carrie nodded, looking almost relieved at not having to impart the information herself.

After gathering as much information about Paul Braden as she could from Carrie Adams, Beckett ended the questioning. "I'd appreciate it if you could wait here for now," Beckett said as she stood, "we may have more questions."

Castle followed her out of the room and immediately asked, "What do you think? Sounds to me like Braden could be a suspect."

"What makes you think that?" Beckett replied. She agreed with him, but wanted to know his theory.

"Why would Eddie be in Carrie's hotel room when he had one of his own, unless he had a fight with his roommate?" Castle posited. "Plus, Braden organized the trip, or at least suggested and promoted it. He could have had an ulterior motive."

"To kill six people in New York instead of in Pennsylvania?" Beckett said, not sounding convinced by the latter part of his argument. "Besides, we don't even know that the other victims with Dunkley knew each other, let alone knew Braden."

Esposito had been waiting for them as they walked back towards her desk, eager to impart some information, and he hurried over as he caught the last part of her statement. "Actually, we do know that now," he told them. "We cross-checked all students in Dunkley, Adams, and Davis's classes against the absentee lists and found a few names who didn't show up for their classes yesterday or today. Got the college to email us photos from their student IDs and..." he trailed off and passed a document to Beckett, allowing her to read the names of the victims herself.

"Braden shared at least one class with all of them," she commented as she read the file.

"He's like Kevin Bacon, six degrees of separation," Castle stated with a wry grin.

"It seems he's the only one who shared a class with Dunkley?" Beckett looked to Esposito for confirmation, and he nodded. "Carrie Adams gave us his cell number, bring him in," she said to Ryan, handing him the number.

Beckett walked to the murder board and added Braden's name to the top, drawing lines from every victim to him.

"We need to confirm with Michael Palmer that Carrie Adams was with him all of last night, can you contact him?" she asked Esposito.

"Sure thing." He took the number and headed to his desk to make the call.

* * *

TBC...


	5. Chapter 5

"Palmer's confirmed Carrie Adams was with him all night. Said they had dinner in the hotel restaurant and then spent the rest of the night in his room," Esposito said as he joined Castle and Beckett. "Do you want me to get him to come in?"

"Did you tell him why you were asking?"

"Just said there'd been some trouble at her hotel, but that she's okay."

Beckett thought for a moment and then nodded her head. "Yeah, get him to come in. Adams could do with a friendly face I think. Palmer's hotel should have better camera footage. Find her on it."

"Will do," he replied. "I've notified the local PD to contact the families of the other victims."

"Good," she nodded. Ryan walked over at that moment and she turned to him. "Any luck with Braden?"

"Cellphone's turned off, but I left a message."

"Okay. Get in touch with Forensics, get them to check Davis's hotel room and then see if they can place Braden at either of the murder scenes. We need something concrete before we can put an alert out to find him."

* * *

"Ah, Darling, you're home," Martha said as Rick entered the loft and joined her in the kitchen. "You look tired."

He scrubbed a hand through his hair and checked his watch, finding it was after nine pm. "Alexis around?" After working on a case involving victims who weren't that much older than his daughter, he had a real desire to give her a hug.

"She went to her room about an hour ago to study, but she said she was going to have an early night."

Castle's face fell for a moment, but then he decided he would sneak into her room later and tuck her in, like he used to do when she was younger. He moved to the fridge and pulled out a beer, cracking open the top and taking a long swig before returning his attention to his mother.

"So, how was your day, Mother?"

"It was fine. I met up with Mary Anderson for lunch."

Rick grinned and asked, "An actual lunch, or the liquid kind?" Mary was an old family friend and could give Martha a run for her money when it came to alcohol consumption.

"Really, dear, you make me sound like an alcoholic."

After giving her a pointed smirk, Rick wrapped an arm around her shoulders and placed a kiss on her cheek. "Maybe, but you're _my_ alcoholic." He dropped onto a stool next to her and leaned backwards to stretch his back, letting out an involuntary sigh as his muscles protested.

"Big case?" Martha asked, sensing her son wanted to talk.

He nodded in reply. "Yeah. Multiple victims. College kids." His eyes drifted towards the stairs, thoughts returning to his daughter who would be a college student herself in the near future.

"Serial killer?"

"Not as such, though we're still trying to figure out a motive. They're all students from Pennsylvania, here for a flash mob." He regretted the words as soon as they left his lips.

"A flash mob? Is that something to do with public indecency? If so, where do I sign up?" Lacing her tone with just the right amount of joviality, Martha managed to elicit a genuine smile from her son.

"Thanks for planting _that_ visual in my head."

"Well, I do want you to have pleasant dreams, dear," Martha retorted, clinking her wine glass against his beer bottle.

Rick shuddered and gave her a mock-glare before draining the last of his beer and standing. "I'm going to check on Alexis and take a shower. I'll see you in the morning." He placed another kiss on her cheek and headed for the stairs. Martha's voice stopped him on the first step.

"Richard, Alexis is far too sensible to ever put herself in a situation where she could be harmed."

He turned to look at her and with complete sincerity said, "Doesn't stop me worrying."

"You wouldn't be a parent if you didn't worry," she told him.

* * *

"Morning, Dad," Alexis greeted her father as he joined her in the kitchen. Wrapping an arm around her, he bid her good morning and placed a kiss on the top of her head. "Grams said your case involves a flash mob. Is that true?"

"Yes." His one-worded reply was unusual for him, but Alexis continued unheeded.

"What's the theme?"

"Sci-fi."

Since Martha hadn't imparted the case details, her eyes lit up with enthusiasm. "Really? Cool. Where and when?"

He shot down her enthusiasm immediately, the tone in his voice more severe than it had ever been with her. "You're not going."

She turned confused and slightly hurt eyes to him. "Why not? It sounds cool. I wouldn't cut class to go to it but -"

He cut her off. "You're not going." It was an order and Alexis realized that something else was bothering her father and she wondered whether to push him to talk.

"You okay?"

"I'm sorry, Pumpkin," he said with a sigh. "This case has gotten to me, but I shouldn't be taking it out on you."

"It's okay, Dad. Can I help?"

"Not unless you can tell me why someone would kill four guys and a girl in one hotel room and another guy in another hotel," he blurted, wishing he could bite back his words when the shock registered on her face.

"Well, I would say it sounds like a case of jealousy, but not when the girl was killed too," Alexis finally said.

"You may be right," he mused.

* * *

TBC... Only a couple more chapters to go, I think.


	6. Chapter 6

The precinct was surprisingly quiet when Castle finally arrived, coffees and bear claw in hand. Esposito was hunched over his desk, studying something in front of him and Ryan was nowhere to be seen. Placing one of the coffees and the bear claw on Beckett's desk, he dropped into his usual seat.

"Anything new?" he asked.

"Not so far."

"Braden not turned up yet?"

"No. We've issued an APB, but nothing so far. We even have a trace on his cell, but he has it turned off. He hasn't turned up at his apartment in Pennsylvania either."

Castle nodded solemnly and then a thought occurred to him. "Does that mean we get to go to the flash mob to try and find him there?" he asked, unable to hide his excitement at the possiblity.

Beckett turned to him as she replied, "As much as it pains me to say this, we might just have to do that."

"Cool!" Castle exclaimed and then checked his watch. "If I leave now, I should have time to go home and still get back in time."

"Why do you need to go home?"

He sent her a look that showed he thought it was a stupid question. "To get my costume, of course. Want me to pick up one for you while I'm out? I have some great ideas of who you could be."

"I bet you do," Beckett replied dryly. "If we go, we're going as we are, no need for costumes."

Castle started to object. "But -"

Beckett cut him off immediately. "We're getting set up to find him there, but hopefully it won't come to that. The boys are working on the background information of the other victims and Braden."

* * *

Beckett and Castle were standing in front of the murder board, drinking coffee and mulling over all the information, looking for anything that might piece things together.

"Yo," Esposito said as he approached them, Ryan in tow. "Forensics can place Braden in Adams' hotel room and in Dunkley's."

Instinctively, Beckett and Castle turned in sync and stood with their shoulders almost touching, each taking a sip of their coffee as they waited for Esposito to elaborate.

"Single hair found near Davis. It had the root attached and the DNA matched with the DNA extracted from a toothbrush in Braden's room. Not Davis's DNA, so it's gotta be Braden's. They found another hair caught in Dunkley's costume."

"Okay, we need to find him. Now. Update the APB and state he's now a murder suspect, not just a person of interest. Also contact the local PD in Pennsylvania and update them, in case he decides to turn up there," Beckett ordered. Ryan rushed off to carry out the tasks.

"I talked to Braden's parents," Esposito said. "He's a real sci-fi nut and had told them he was going to the flash mob. He also told them he had met a girl called Annie that he was interested in."

"Think he'll still show?" Castle wondered aloud.

"I think we now have no option but to try and find out," Beckett stated, shaking her head as Castle failed to contain his glee at attending the flash mob.

* * *

"I still say you should have let me get my costume," Castle grumbled as Beckett drove them back to the precinct.

"Quit complaining, Castle. You're lucky I even let you out of the car. I knew you wouldn't be able to stop yourself and would try to join in with the flash mob."

"I couldn't join in, not properly, since the whole point was to turn up in a sci-fi costume."

Rolling her eyes, Beckett told him, "I'm sure you'll survive without participating in a flash mob, Castle."

"That particular flash mob? Yes, I'm sure I will. However, I am now even more determined to _encourage_ a Castle flash mob in Times Square," he grinned.

"I'll have you arrested," she warned.

"For what?"

"Inciting... something. I'll think of something, Castle."

"Nice to know you'll be thinking of me," he replied with a smirk. "So, why'd you let Braden ride back with Ryan and Espo?"

"So I can think about my plan of attack for the interrogation while I drive. If I ever get peace and quiet to do that," she said pointedly.

Castle ignored her comment and said, "I'm impressed with how easily we found him. I guess it was helpful that he didn't choose a costume that involved a mask."

"His parents did say he was going to be Han Solo," she pointed out.

"Yeah, but you'd think he'd have switched so he could camouflage himself more easily."

"He doesn't really seem like someone who thinks things through, considering he probably murdered six people and then turned up at the one place we knew he might be."

"True."

* * *

Thanks for the continued reviews and alerts. Always appreciated.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Continued thanks to Tanya Reed for the great beta job.

* * *

"What happened, Paul?" Beckett asked as she sat down opposite him in the interrogation room. Her tone was soft, but with an edge of steel. She hoped if she gave him enough rope, he'd hang himself during the questioning.

"What happened with what?" Braden shrugged. Hewas reclined in his seat, legs wide apart and his hands resting on his thighs. He had initially told them he didn't need an attorney, but had changed his mind by the time he got to the precinct. However, he hadn't spent much time alone with the court appointed attorney before telling them he was ready to 'get the party started'. Arrogance oozed from every pore.

Castle let out a low whistle as he took his seat beside the detective, eagerly anticipating Beckett's imminent smackdown of the young man.

"The way I heard it, you're only in town for the flash mob. Organized a college road trip of sorts. Yet, instead of hanging out with your friends, it seems you were left on your own, while the others split off into groups. Not quite what you expected to happen?" The narrowing of Braden's eyes assured Beckett she was getting to him, even if his posture remained the same. She decided to push some more. "I bet you consider yourself the big man on campus. Then you found out that it's a big world out there and you're not such a _big man_ when you're not on campus."

Braden shifted in his seat, still trying to look relaxed, but his hands were now joined together and his fingers were nervously fidgeting.

Glancing at her partner momentarily, Beckett gave Castle his cue and he asked the question he'd begged her to let him ask.

"Why Han Solo, Paul?" Braden looked at him but didn't reply, so Castle continued, "For the flash mob. You organized the trip for all your friends, I expected you to have more of a kick ass costume than that"

"Nothin' wrong with Han Solo," Braden objected immediately.

Castle nodded. "Han Solo's a good guy, just a bit of a boring costume."

Braden glared at Castle, but said nothing.

"So what made you organize the trip, Paul?" Beckett asked.

A shrug was the first response, but she patiently repeated her question and after glancing at his attorney, he replied, "Seemed like it would be fun."

"And you organized everything?"

"I just told them it was on, suggested they come along."

"You told them the flash mob would be sci-fi related?"

"Yeah."

"Did you discuss costumes at all?"

"No."

"You didn't discuss costumes at all?" Castle queried, leaning forward and resting his jaw on his right hand. Braden's only response was a shrug. "So, there was a possibility that one of your friends would also choose to be Han Solo? You would be okay with that?"

"I told them that I would be Han Solo and that no-one else had better use that costume," Braden stated. "What of it?"

"Why did you choose Han Solo?" asked Beckett.

"I'm young, good looking..." he trailed off with a shrug.

"So are numerous other sci-fi characters," stated Castle.

Beckett knew he was about to start reeling them off and silenced him with a glare.

"Han Solo's the most well known," Braden commented.

Beckett pounced on his words. "Which brings us back to the popularity contest." She then switched subjects slightly again. "Which of your friends was planning to dress as Leia for the flash mob?"

"How would I know?" he shrugged.

Beckett rolled her eyes. "Right, you only told them not to dress as Han Solo." Braden stayed silent and Beckett tried again. "You didn't know Annie Dunkley was going as Leia?"

His breath hitched for a moment before his arrogance surged to the surface once more when he admitted, "She might have mentioned it."

Castle turned to Beckett and stage-whispered, "Think Han Solo here wanted to hook up with Leia? That's why he chose that costume?"

She replied in the same manner. "I think that's a definite possibility. Guess she saw through him though, realized he was more of a Darth Maul than a Han Solo."

Castle grinned. "All this sci-fi talk is incredibly sexy, but please don't mix the trilogies."

"Jabba the Hutt?" she suggested.

"That works," he agreed. Though they were conversing with each other, both were keeping a close eye on Braden, watching his ire rise to the surface as they compared him to the giant slug-like character. His attorney moved to interrupt, but Braden waved him away with a hand gesture.

"But didn't Leia kill Jabba?" Beckett asked, already knowing the answer.

"She did," Castle confirmed. "Fake-Jabba here obviously doesn't know his Star Wars well enough, since he reversed that part."

"I didn't kill her!" Braden protested. They had arrested him as a person of interest in the murder of Annie Dunkley, Eddie Davis and the five other victims. Although Beckett had been tempted to arrest him only for Davis's murder, she felt that Annie Dunkley was the key to it all and wanted to be free to discuss that case too.

"We'll get to that in a minute, Paul," Beckett told him, staring down his attorney who was about to object. "When did you last speak to your friends?"

"Which ones? I have many"

Chuckling, Beckett replied, "Those you persuaded to make the trip."

"I didn't have to do any _persuading_, they came of their own accord."

"When did you last talk to them?"

"Any particular friends? A lot are here in New York."

"Let's start with your roommate, Eddie Davis."

Braden's gaze switched nervously between Beckett and Castle before he answered. "I saw him yesterday lunchtime."

"You didn't see him after that?"

"No."

"You two were sharing a hotel room though, right?"

"Yeah, but neither of us were planning on spending much time there."

"Where were you planning to be?"

"We both like the ladies, what can I say?" Braden replied with a salacious grin.

"Any ladies in particular?"

Braden didn't reply and Castle decided to re-join the questioning.

"What about, say, Annie Dunkley?"

Braden shrugged. "What about her?"

"You invited her along on the trip, right? It wasn't one of the others who invited her?"

"It was me. So? I invited a lot of people."

"Did you travel to New York with her?"

"No, I came on my own. My class timetable made it awkward."

"So who'd Annnie come with?"

"I have no idea."

Beckett took over again. "Really? Considering she didn't know anyone else making the trip, you didn't help her make travel arrangements, so she wouldn't be on her own?"

"No. Like I said, how people got here was their own problem."

"That's not very gentlemanly of you, Paul," Castle stated before turning to Beckett and commenting, "Kids today."

"Detective," the attorney warned and Beckett gave Castle a conspiratorial smile.

"Have you seen Annie since you've been in New York?" Beckett phrased the question casually, but his answer would be crucial, since they had forensic evidence placing him with her.

"Yeah, we met up a couple of nights ago."

"Where?"

Braden hesitated and Beckett could almost hear the wheels turning in his head as he considered his answer.

"In a bar, near my hotel."

"Just the two of you?"

It was like a lightning flash, but Beckett caught it, a spark of anger in Braden's eyes.

"No, there were a few of us."

"Did the others cramp your style, Paul?" Beckett asked, her tone a mixture of sympathy and pity, designed to raise his ire further. She would address the issue of his DNA in her hotel room later.

"With what?"

"Getting Annie alone. That was the whole reason for inviting her along on the trip, right?"

"I invited her because I thought she'd enjoy it," he stated.

"The flash mob?" Beckett queried. Braden nodded. "What made you think she'd enjoy it?"

"She came along, didn't she?" He shrugged, trying to avoid the question.

Beckett wasn't letting him off the hook so easily. "You said you invited her because you thought she'd enjoy it. What made you think that?" she repeated calmly.

"The sci-fi aspect, I knew she'd get a kick out of it."

"Annie was a sci-fi fan?"

"Yeah," Braden nodded.

"She tell you that?"

"Yeah."

It didn't fit with what Annie's brother had told them about her and Beckett had double-checked with him about it, but she supposed Annie could have lied to Braden.

"How well did you know Annie?"

"We take a class together."

"Did you hang out outside of class?"

"Every so often."

"Alone, or with other classmates?"

"Usually with others."

"_Usually_?" she baited.

"We were on our own once or twice," Braden clarified, his voice almost monotone, as if he were bored with the conversation.

"Did you date?"

"No."

"Did you ever ask her on a date?"

"No." The spark was there again, a lightning flash through his eyes and Beckett filed the information away for use when she wanted to push his buttons.

"Just friends then?"

"Yes."

Now getting fully into her stride, she decided to probe for more information.

"Did Annie agree immediately to come to New York with you?"

"Huh?"

"Very eloquent, Paul," Castle commented.

Beckett rephrased the question, not letting Braden play his games. "When you asked Annie to come to New York, did she agree right away, or did she take some time to think about it?"

"Who said I asked her?"

"You did," Castle stated. "You said you invited her along."

"Yeah, but I didn't _ask_ her as such. I just mentioned that a bunch of us were going and said if she was interested to let me know."

Beckett rolled her eyes at the distinction.

"And how long did she take to let you know?" she asked.

"I think she told me after our next class together. A couple of days, I guess."

"Did she ask who else was going?" The fact that Annie didn't share classes with any of the other victims bothered her.

"Yeah. I told her a couple of names. She didn't know them." They'd already clarified that much when they had discussed the travel arrangements.

Beckett returned to an earlier line of questioning. "When you met up with her in the bar a couple of nights ago, did she arrive with the others?"

"Yeah," replied Braden as anger flashed again.

"Did she say how she'd met up with them?"

"They were on the train to New York with her and she'd recognized them from campus and got talking to them."

"I thought you said you didn't know who Annie travelled with?"

Braden was dumbstruck for a moment, annoyance etched on his face, but he soon recovered.

"I forgot she'd told me while we were in the bar."

"Was Eddie Davis one of the group she arrived with in the bar?" Beckett knew that Davis hadn't travelled to New York with Annie, as he'd travelled with Carrie Adams, but she had a feeling they'd met at some point.

"No."

"Did Eddie join you later?"

"Yeah."

"When?"

"Maybe an hour after I got there?" He shrugged. "He was out when I got to our hotel, but I left him a note telling him where I'd be."

"Had Annie and Eddie met before that night?"

"No." Braden's voice was now giving away his anger and his lips were set in a fine line as he tried to bite back the temper that was threatening to escape.

"But they met at the bar?"

"Yes."

"Did they hit it off?"

"I guess." Braden tried to sound casual, but he failed. His answer was clipped, as though it had physically pained him to utter the words.

"And Annie was enjoying spending time with the rest of the group?"

"Detective, is there a point to all this?" the attorney asked.

Beckett turned her attention to him, while still keeping an eye on Braden, whose right knee was now bouncing up and down nervously.

"I have six people dead, all Penn State students, all here for a flash mob, most of whom knew your client. I need to know how well they knew each other." After being stared down by Beckett, the attorney finally nodded his head to acquiesce and she resumed the questioning. "Paul, when did you last see Eddie Davis?"

"A couple of days ago."

"You're sharing a hotel room, didn't you think it was strange that you hadn't seem him for a couple of days?"

"Not really. Like I said, we didn't plan to spend much time in our room."

"Did you know Carrie Adams was staying in the same hotel as you?"

"Yeah. She booked it because we were staying there."

"You're good friends?"

"She is with Eddie. I take a class with her and know her a little bit."

"Have you seen her since you've been in New York?"

"No."

'Gotcha' thought Castle as he sat back in his seat, waiting for the next act of the show to begin.

* * *

TBC...

Thanks again for the reviews and alerts. There should only be one more chapter to go.


End file.
